Can I access my super at 60 and still work?

Accessing your super and continuing to work may seem like having your cake and eating it too – but here’s a guide to how you may be able to do that from age 60.

Generally speaking, you can get access to your Australian super, whether you’re working or not, once you reach 65.

If you’re younger than that, then the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) says there are a number of conditions you need to meet before you can access your super.

One of those conditions is that you’ve reached your preservation age. That age varies depending on when you were born, but is between 55 and 60. From 1 July 2024 the preservation age should be 60 for everybody.

So what if you’ve reached 60 and want to access your super, and do some paid work? One of the easiest ways to stay working and access some of your super is to set up a transition to retirement (TTR) strategy (more on that later).

But there is another way you can access your super at 60 and still do some paid work. So let’s take a closer look

Can I access my super at 60 and still work?

It’s possible to access your super at 60 and do some paid work, under certain conditions. Once you’ve reached your preservation age of 60, the ATO says you also need to meet one of the conditions of release of your super.

One of those conditions, according to the ATO, is that you cease an employment arrangement on or after the age of 60.

“Leaving an employment arrangement is a valid condition of release for this purpose, even if (you) do not intend to retire permanently from gainful employment,” an ATO spokesperson told Canstar.

“A person in this situation can access superannuation accumulated up until that time.”

It would be a good idea to talk to your super fund to see what options are available to you to withdraw any or all of your accumulated super money. You could consider a lump sum, or use some or all of that money to set up a regular income stream.

The key thing though, warns the ATO, is that the “cessation of employment” must be genuine. You may run into problems if your aim is to stop your employment, say to access your super, but plan to start again soon after.

Once you’ve retired from work and started to access your super there may later be a valid reason why you wish to return to the workforce to earn some money.

But Paul Versteege, policy manager at the Combined Pensioners & Superannuants Association (CPSA) – a non-profit group for pensioners and retirees – told Canstar: “Basically you need to retire from work altogether and then return to the workforce, with some time in between.”

Can I still earn super if I access my existing super and start a new job?

If you’ve reached 60 and started to access your existing super, and then later take up any new paid employment, you may be eligible for super contributions from your new employer. But the ATO says you will not be able to access any of that new accumulated super until you end that job.

If you’ve only accessed part of your existing accumulated super fund, then you may still be able to have your new employer pay any super contribution into your existing super fund. Make sure your employer has the details of your super fund.

The CPSA’s Paul Versteege told Canstar there is no obligation on you to start up a new super account so you would typically stay with the super account you already have.

“The thing to understand is that an overall super account can consist of a pension account and an accumulation account,” he said.

“So, for someone wanting to access their super they would typically have both. The accumulation account receives employer contributions, while the pension account is used to withdraw money from super.”

Again, check with your super fund to make sure the correct payments are being made into and out of your super.

Can I get earlier access to my super with a transition to retirement?

Another way to get early access to your super and continue to do some paid work is with a transition to retirement (TTR) strategy.

The ATO says this allows you to reduce your hours of work and top up your part-time earnings with money from a regular ‘income stream’ from your super.

The TTR rules are slightly different from the early access situation described above, as the ATO says you can’t take any super money as a lump sum. But your employer will still be making some contribution to your super, based on your reduced earnings.

Whatever strategy you use to access your super at 60 and still doing some paid work, there are pros and cons you need to consider. When you start to draw from your super fund you will be tapping into money you earmarked for your retirement, but getting that early access can still have its advantages.

For example, Ian Henschke is chief advocate for the National Seniors Organisation, another not-for-profit group advocating for older Australians, and he told Canstar that some people like to access their super money early to help pay off their mortgage or other big expenses.

“If you can stay in the workforce then you can have the best of both worlds, you can access your super and keep working to top up your super,” he said.

Before adopting any early access to super at 60 though it’s a good idea to seek some independent financial advice, and to talk to your super fund to see what options are available.

In particular, you might want to see if there are any tax implications from accessing your super and doing any paid work, especially if you are in a relationship.

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